Cube Farm Sustainability

Cube Farm Sustainability

Claire sighed reaching for her water bottle. The lack of weight in the bottle elicited another sigh. Empty, she thought as the keyboard keys continued their syncopated symphony in the cube farm. Claire stealthily walked to the break room intent on avoiding any co-worker interaction. Mercury was in retrograde and that was her planned excuse for anyone who asked what was up with her.

She didn't immediately notice that there was someone else in the breakroom and walked to the water cooler. As the water filled her bottle, she heard the rustle of plastic behind her. She turned and saw Meg, the director of marketing, sitting at a table with three different lunch boxes in front of her, the contents all removed and placed meticulously in front of each bag. Claire noticed none of the lunch bags were Meg's.

"Morning, Meg." Claire said hesitantly. "Did something spill in the fridge?" She tried to give her a chance to explain.

Meg hastily shoved something in her pocket. "I thought I smelled something rotten and I just wanted to make sure it hadn't affected these lunches." She put the contents of the bags back together and quickly shoved them back in the fridge before rushing out of the room.

She shook her head and walked back to her cubicle and sat down. A new email had come in while she was away. She opened it and scanned it. She laughed out loud as the email from HR outlined the punishment for anyone caught stealing the lunch of another person. However, her amusement over the situation turned to sadness. She grabbed a notecard from her desk and began to write a little note to Meg asking if she wanted to grab a bite to eat after work someday soon.